As Bangladesh prepares the FY2026-27 national budget, Save the Children has urged the government to prioritise children through stronger and better-targeted investments in health, education and protection, saying spending must be more effective to deliver tangible results for vulnerable groups.
In recommendations released ahead of the budget announcement, the organization said increased allocations alone are not sufficient and called for improved planning, transparency and accountability in the use of resources for children.
The recommendations are based on findings from the National Children’s Task Force (NCTF), a child-led platform supported by Save the Children. Over recent months, children from 27 districts documented challenges affecting their lives, highlighting gaps in education, healthcare, nutrition, child protection and social safety nets.
According to the findings, children in the haor areas of Sunamganj regularly miss months of schooling due to seasonal flooding, increasing their risk of child labour and early marriage. In the tea gardens of Sylhet, limited access to pediatric healthcare continues to expose children to preventable illnesses. In the coastal district of Barguna, saline-contaminated drinking water is affecting children’s health and development.
The children also reported rising substance abuse among young people in Faridpur, while in Satkhira, a lack of safe recreational spaces has contributed to the growth of so-called “kishore gangs.” In Chuadanga, children as young as seven are reportedly living on the streets without access to education or protection services.
“These realities point to structural gaps that the national budget can address,” Save the Children said, adding that children have identified many of the solutions themselves.
The organization outlined six recommendations for the FY2026-27 budget.
First, it called for the restoration of the Child Budget Statement alongside the national budget to improve transparency in tracking child-related allocations and outcomes across ministries.
Second, it urged the government to raise education spending to 16% of the national budget and ensure financing for the Tk50,000-crore Fifth Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP5).
Third, it recommended increasing health spending to 11% of total expenditure, with a focus on children and mothers. Proposed measures include establishing neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in district hospitals, increasing healthcare staffing, strengthening immunisation and nutrition services, and expanding adolescent mental health, psychosocial support and WASH programmes.
The organization also called for dedicated funding to protect children from violence, child marriage, labour exploitation and substance abuse, including ring-fenced allocations for child and women support cells at the union level.
In addition, it urged stronger social protection measures through needs-based targeting, greater parental engagement in the School Feeding Programme and the creation of a Child Benefit Contingency Fund to maintain essential services during floods, inflation and other shocks.
Its final recommendation focused on climate resilience, including investment in climate-adaptive schools, child-centred early warning systems and green skills training for out-of-school girls.
“Every ask comes directly from a child who has already identified what is missing,” the organization said.
Save the Children said it envisions a Bangladesh where opportunities for children, particularly girls, are not determined by geography or socioeconomic background.
“A budget that invests in them now is the first and best investment Bangladesh can make for a stronger and more prosperous future,” it added.
